We can't agree on a name for the baby! Help!

[adymarie]

Well, I am due in less then 3 weeks now and my hubby and I are no where near naming this child. We are having a boy. The funny thing is we have no problems agreeing on a girl's name (it would be Robin Allison), but we can't agree on a boy's name. I really like the name Grant. John doesn't like names that are also last names, so he doesn't overly like Grant (or Logan). He likes the name Kevin (which I don't mind, but not my number 1 choice). He also likes Andrew, which is his middle name. I like Andrew as a middle name, but not a 1st name because I don't like the nickname Andy (which in a Scottish family he would get). I have also suggested Timothy and Kenneth (which is my dad's middle name). John just brought up Aaron yesterday.

Help!!!!!!!!! Please help me by giving some suggestions. The last name is McFarlane, so it has to go with that.

 

[pinkdaisy226]

Eek. Good luck with that! For some reason I think guy's names are harder to come up with... but that's just me. By the way, if you like Andrew but don't like Andy he could go by Drew? Or just don't call him anything but Andrew and then he won't have a nickname you don't like.

Does he like your suggestions of Timothy and Kenneth? Do you like the name Aaron?

I think any of those names go with your last name. Sorry I can't be of more help... I know I've always said that I don't get care what my husband thinks the name is gonna be, if I'm gonna have to go through pregnancy and labor, *I'm* comin up with the final name!

 

[leli]

No problem....I taught swimming lessons for 7 years, so I have a million names stored, from Alex to Zachary

....okay, McFarlane....no last names, preferably. I'd agree that Andrew is good for a middle name, but I personally wouldn't use if for a first name, because there are a lot of Andrews and I have a thing about not using overly common (or uncommon) names

...of course, that's just my opinion.

Here's a few boys' names that I like and you can consider...
Graham (or Graeme) is similar to Grant, but not a common last name...
Mark is a name that I really like...I would probably go with Marcus Andrew McFarlane aka Mark McFarlane
Adam is nice, but if you decide on Andrew for the middle name, two As in a row might be a little much.
Aidan is also nice, but same issue as with Adam
James is always a popular choice as long as you can stand the nicknames (Jimmy, Jim)
Gregory (or less common, Gregor)
Spencer goes well with your last name, IMO
Mitchell has been gaining popularity

Names I'd steer clear of, unless you really like them (mostly because they are just incredibly common, not that they aren't nice names):
Christopher
Michael
Jacob (Jake)

There's a start for you...if you want more suggestions, let me know and I'll keep them coming.
Congrats on the baby.

 

[wellingtoncats]

No name suggestions here, but good luck Ady! And do let us know your final choice.

Also maybe when you see him you will both agree on a name. I don't know anyone in my family that chooses the name before the baby is born.

 

[lillekat]

If I were you, I'd wait tosee what your little boy looks like

truth be told, I didn't name Alex until I held him. I'd already decided to use the two grandad's names as his middle name. But he got Alexander

And that one is a good Scottish name

McFarlane is quite common around where I am... things like Aidan are nice - it's a personal favourite.. and what Alex would have been called had he looked like an Aidan! I have a HUGE baby names book that also includes all sorts of unusual names plus their meanings. If you want something sp'ific then I'd me more than happy to look it up for you. Though I flatly refuse to go for the crazy stuff that some Americans seem to come up with.... I mean ... Peekaboo? Peaches? Fifi?

Poor kids!

Good luck - I've got my fingers crossed for you - trust me, you'll find something just perfect for your family. But remember, even though you and your hubby will have to like the name... your son is the one who will have to live with it all his life!!

 

[deb25]

I agree with calling the baby Andrew right from the get-go and avoiding the Andy thing. My son is Anthony in an Italian family. At first, some called him Tony, but he doesn't respond to it, as we have always called him Anthony. Also a trend that I see from working in the public school system, those nicknames like we used to have are not all that vogue anymore. Roberts are not Bob or Bobby. Jameses are not Jim or Jimmy. My nephew is Christopher, not Chris. Michaels are not Mike. The majority of boys are called by their given names, and not some nickname form.

 

[ttmom]

Here's what DH and I did. We both made a list of all the baby names we liked and then took all the names that were on both lists and chose our favorites off of that. The first one that we both chose became the baby's name: Jamison.

 

[caprice]

How about: Kenneth Andrew McFarlane ?

Sounds precious to me!

 

[graykittenlove]

I don't really have a lot of suggestions.

Here's the suggestions I give everyone, (even if they don't ask, aren't I noisy.

)

Please don't choose a name that is mispelled. Going through life with a name that is not spelled with one of the accepted variations of it is a pain in the rear. I ususally have to spell my name two or three times for people.

Also I try and encourage people not to pick uni-sex names. Kids already have enough reasons to tease each other. Yes Traci is a fine name I guess but first day of school on the bus there were two of us, one boy and one girl, needless to say we both got teased. (Note: This wasn't the only male Tracy/Tracie/Traci/Tracey, that I have run into.)

Oh and if at all possible don't choose the shortened form of a name, I mean Bobby is a cute name for a little boy don't get me wrong but Robert is a lot more professional and at least that way, the child will have a choice to go by either the full name or the shortened version.

Good luck though, I'm sure whatever you choose will be great.

 

[caprice]

I agree with Traci! My first name is spelled "Candice" a lot of people never had a problem spelling my first and always butchered my last, since it was French. Now that my last name is very easy "Price", they have decided to start butchering my first name--now I get "Candace", "Kandace", "Candance"

 

[deb25]

How about Daniel? Although with Andrew as the middle name, it seems repetitive on the 'an' sound.

 

[katl8e]

My sons both have their fathers' first names and a different middle name: James Richard (his father is James Robert) and Mark Thomas (Thomas is my maiden name). The elder has been Richard, from Day One.

One of my nephews is Andrew James (James is my brother Mike's first name) and he's been A.J., all of his life.

My family is notorious for giving one a first name and then using the middle name. My maternal grandparents both used their middle names. He was Thomas David and everyone always called him Dave. I don't blame Granny for preferring Jewell to Myrtice. Two of my brothers, Duane Randall (Randy) and James Michael (Mike) have always gone by their middle name, too.

If all else fails, there is always "Junior".

 

[sharonkay]

Originally Posted by LilleKat

If I were you, I'd wait tosee what your little boy looks like

truth be told, I didn't name Alex until I held him. I'd already decided to use the two grandad's names as his middle name. But he got Alexander

This might be a good plan...I know that my coworker had planned to name her baby Madison, had been calling the baby that ever since the ultrasound that showed the baby was a girl. The night she delivered, 3 other little girls were named Madison in that hospital and she couldn't take it so she had to come up with another name

She had always liked the name Carley, but her last name is Cole and she didn't dig "carly cole" so she came up with Rylee. :-)

anyway, you never know

you might surprise yourself when your baby is born.

 

[catherine]

Originally Posted by Leli

No problem....I taught swimming lessons for 7 years, so I have a million names stored, from Alex to Zachary

....okay, McFarlane....no last names, preferably. I'd agree that Andrew is good for a middle name, but I personally wouldn't use if for a first name, because there are a lot of Andrews and I have a thing about not using overly common (or uncommon) names

...of course, that's just my opinion.

Here's a few boys' names that I like and you can consider...
Graham (or Graeme) is similar to Grant, but not a common last name...
Mark is a name that I really like...I would probably go with Marcus Andrew McFarlane aka Mark McFarlane
Adam is nice, but if you decide on Andrew for the middle name, two As in a row might be a little much.
Aidan is also nice, but same issue as with Adam
James is always a popular choice as long as you can stand the nicknames (Jimmy, Jim)
Gregory (or less common, Gregor)
Spencer goes well with your last name, IMO
Mitchell has been gaining popularity

Names I'd steer clear of, unless you really like them (mostly because they are just incredibly common, not that they aren't nice names):
Christopher
Michael
Jacob (Jake)

There's a start for you...if you want more suggestions, let me know and I'll keep them coming.
Congrats on the baby.

Wow!! I like your first choice above!! Graham is my son's name! My husband and I couldn't agree on anything either!! I finally decided to name him after my dad b/c my hubby didn't want a junoir and my dad didn't have any boys. We were going to name him Leland Graham but when he was born, he didn't look like a Leland so at the last minute I changed it to Graham Alexander. My father's middle name and my FIL's middle name. Killed 2 birds with 1 stone!

I too, don't like "new" names....just don't really like common names either. If you like the older style names, why don't you start a thread asking for everyone's grandparents names? That would give you thousands of ideas and possibly a final name!

Good luck!

 

[adymarie]

thanks everyone! I do love the name Graeme, but that is a name John doesn't like - he has issues with names that can be teased - Graeme Cracker. I love Duncan - but he says Duncan Donut!

We do have lists on the go, but I am looking to add to them. We will probably choose when we see him after he is born. All of my cats named themselves that way - their name just fit. Hopefully it is the same for kids!

 

[mrsd]

Here are a few of my suggestions:

Luke Andrew
Craig Andrew
James Andrew
William Andrew
Thomas Andrew

Because your last name is three syllables, it's better to have shorter syllables for the first name. (That's what I've read in baby books...)

Make sure you yell the full name a few times, to see how you like the flow...

Best wishes!

 

[catherine]

It doesn't matter what you name your child. Children will find a way to tease them regardless! My name is Catherine, and have always been called Catherine....no nicknames. Well, the kids used to call me "cat" and then hiss and meow and growl. My sister is Margaret, she got called "maggot", "magrat"..........etc.

People call my son Graham cracker and he ignores them. (he's only 4) He loves his name and isn't bothered by it. Pick what you like and something that they can grow into. Like someone else said, when he is older he may want a more "professional" name.

Keep us posted!!

 

[jcat]

Originally Posted by adymarie

We do have lists on the go, but I am looking to add to them. We will probably choose when we see him after he is born. All of my cats named themselves that way - their name just fit. Hopefully it is the same for kids!

I think it is. My sister and her husbands had names picked out before all four kids were born, and ended up giving all of them different names once they saw the babies! The big problem is that the girls (Lauren & Erin) and boys (Sean & Shane) have names that are too similar; added to it is that all our relatives (including my sister) forget and call Erin "Tricia", because she's more or less my clone. Poor kid.

 

[lenaorie]

I dont know what to tell ya!!
Josh doesnt agree with any of the names that i have picked out for our kids either.. he said they are either too close together, or too hard for him to say...


i love the names...
Jalyn
Mason
Parker
Jacob
Heath
Bradey
Graham
----
names of the babies at the daycare...
Johnathan
Jackson
Cole(Colton)
Brandyn
Dalen

thats all i have for now, i will have to try to think of names from the daycare.. and get back with ya!

 

[deb25]

Originally Posted by adymarie

We will probably choose when we see him after he is born. All of my cats named themselves that way - their name just fit. Hopefully it is the same for kids!

I think it honestly is. We had chosen Anthony before he was born, and I always imagined a dark-haired Italian-looking kid. He turned out to be a blond, and we stuck with the name, but it took me a long while before I really felt like it fit him. If I had it to do over, I probably would have changed it based on the way he really looked. It is also a BIG reason why he was not a Tony.